Why is Kentucky Distillers’ Association taking shuttered bourbon maker to court?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- KDA moved to intervene to recover $93,865.89 in unpaid membership dues.
- Garrard County Distilling entered receivership in April amid $26M lender debt.
- Court consolidated claims in July to enable sale to satisfy liens and unpaid taxes.
The Kentucky Distillers’ Association is going to court against a shuttered distillery for failing to pay almost $94,000 in dues.
The Frankfort-based nonprofit that promotes and lobbies for member distillers has filed a motion to intervene in a case involving Garrard County Distilling, which has been in receivership since April. The distillery opened in January 2024, claiming to be “Kentucky’s largest all-new independent distillery,” with tours and a tasting room.
According to the new filing in Garrard County Circuit Court, the company was accepted as a “proof member” in KDA and was placed on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail last year “but has failed to pay invoices for KDA membership and services now totaling $93,865.
The KDA wants to intervene Garrard County Distilling Company’s case to pursue collection of the money. Neither the KDA nor an attorney for the KDA responded to a request for comment Tuesday afternoon.
Judge Hunter Daugherty is scheduled to hear the motion at 9 a.m. on Nov. 7.
Kentucky distillery in receivership
Garrard County Distilling Co. closed in April facing a lawsuit and more than $2.2 million in liens. It was eventually placed in receivership, as lender Truist Bank claimed it was owed more than $26 million.
Garrard County was one of the first new Kentucky distilleries to face economic hardship in what’s become a wave of financial trouble this year for the state’s $9 billion bourbon industry, brought on by decreasing demand and President Trump’s ongoing trade war.
Garrard County was preceded by Kentucky Owl’s bankruptcy in late 2024 and followed by Luca Mariano’s bankruptcy this summer, Uncle Nearest’s receivership in Tennessee and others.
In July, a Garrard County court allowed claims against the distillery to be consolidated so that all the claims could be resolved.
The bank said the distillery “should be sold under proper orders of the Court, free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and claims.” Proceeds of the sale would be used to pay off debts and unpaid taxes.
